Of Spitfires and Friendships
by OlyveTheOctoPus
Summary: TJ didn't know when his feelings had changed for his spitfire best friend. Maybe it was when she was throwing up in his bathroom. Maybe it was when she needed consoling. Too bad Spinelli would rather run than confront her own feelings. Slight AU.
1. Chapter 1

**Story: Of Spitfires and Friendships  
Pairing: T.J./Spinelli, lite Gretchen/Vince  
Rating: Mid T  
Summary: T.J. doesn't really know when his feelings for Spinelli changed, but he can't imagine living without her. Too bad she has yet to realize her own. Slight AU. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Recess and am merely using the characters for my own entertainment.**

* * *

"Excuse me! Have you seen Spinelli?" Gretchen yelled at two teens in a heated embrace. She could barely hear herself over the deafening music.

They both shook their head and she kept squeezing and shoving through the crowd, searching for the signature red baseball cap of T.J. Maybe he would know where she was. She found him sitting by the open bar, his cellphone in hand, a particularly annoyed look on his face.

"T.J! I finally found you! Where the heck is Spinelli?"

He shrugged, "I dunno. One minute, we were chatting by the bar, the next, she's gone."

"Well we need to get going! We have a history test tomorrow, and she can't fail this or she'll fail the class this semester!"

"Believe me, I tried to call her and find her, but she hasn't picked up her phone."

Gretchen rolled her eyes, "I'll be on my best behaviour, she says. I won't go crazy. Let's just go to the party, she says. I knew this would happen. I'm not sticking around all evening, T.J. I'm going home to study. Please see to it that she gets home safely. Oh, and do tell Vince we need to talk."

"About what?"

"Don't worry about it. I'll see you tomorrow, T.J."

He waved as she turned to leave and then looked around for his small Italian friend. He knew how she got at these parties. He just didn't want to see her get taken advantage of by someone while she was intoxicated. Because he knew she would come after them with a force, and they would cry. He had to prevent any needless pain from happening. He called her one last time deciding if she didn't pick up now, he would go looking for her, regardless of how awful it would be to find her in a bedroom with another guy.

Surprisingly, she picked up on the first ring, "Teej! My man! Where you at?!"

He didn't know how much she had to drink, but she was most definitely not sober. "Spinelli. We have to go now. Where are you?"

"No way dude! I'm having the time of my life!"

"You won't be tomorrow when you go to your history test with a raging hangover. C'mon. Where are you?"

"We're about to go skinny dipping! Cowabunga!"

"Skinny dipping? What-"

The pool.

He hung up and shoved by a bunch of people and raced to the outdoor pool. She may be intoxicated, but he couldn't let her embarrass herself. Or possibly have her life ruined by a picture.

He went past the screen door where there were a bunch of people jamming to the music and some cheering. He heard the splash of the pool and rushed over. Someone had already removed their clothes and hopped in the pool. He looked around until he found Spinelli trying to remove a stocking by the diving board. Her coordination was totally shot. Even he could tell from over there.

He walked over to her and pulled her up to her feet in one fell swoop. "C'mon Spin. Time to go home."

"What? Hell no! You go home! The party just started!" She made a face and belched, and he recoiled at the sheer amount of alcohol on her breath.

"Gee whiz... How much did you have to drink?"

She laughed, "What's it to ya?"

Sighing, he lifted her onto his shoulder, despite her fists hitting his back, "Put me down!"

People heard the commotion and turned to face them, grinning suggestively. Someone whooped and shouted 'Get a room!'

He ignored them and Spinelli's interesting threats of castration and continued to push past the crowd out of the party. "You may not like it now, but trust me, you'll thank me later."

She didn't respond, so he bumped her up a bit. A wayward snore burst from her lips and he rolled his eyes. Of course. This always happened. They'd go to a party with Spinelli, she'd drink to oblivion, he'd stop her from doing something stupid, and then she would fall asleep, leaving him to clean up the mess and take care of the aftermath.

He jolted her again, "You're a mess, you know that, Spin? You need to get your act together."

She giggled, half-asleep, "I love you, T.J. Love ya, man." And then socked him on the shoulder once before blubbering nonsense words in her sleepy state.

He rolled his eyes as he reached his car, "Yeah, yeah I know. Just don't barf in my car okay?"

The ride was fairly calm with Spinelli staying partly asleep for most of it, but at some point, she woke up and held her stomach in agony. "T.J. I'm not feeling so hot."

"Don't barf in my car! We're almost at your place. Just hold on."

"No!" She leaned back when her exclamation made her head spin. "I wanna go to your place. Take me to your place."

"It's right next door you know? It won't be too much trouble to bring you home." But he stopped insisting when he saw her fervently shaking her head, and then grabbing it when her head started pounding. He glanced at her, trying to figure out why she sincerely didn't want to go home. He parked in front of his house and as soon as the car stopped, she wasted no time in snatching his keys, hopping out and sprinting across the yard to his front door. No doubt she was going to puke.

T.J. locked up his car and followed her warily, heading up to his bathroom. Sure enough, he heard the sound of garbled retching and could hear the chunks hitting the water in his toilet bowl. As per routine, he bent down behind Spinelli and pulled her long black locks out of her face, holding them back and rubbing her back as she emptied herself in his toilet. When the last of the dry heaving was finally done, she wiped her mouth, breathing hard.

"Shit. I feel awful." her voice was hoarse and he filled a cup of water which she down gratefully.

"Well you should, Spin. You had a shit ton to drink." He helped her stand up and watched as she picked up the toothbrush she often left at his house and scrubbed her teeth. "You gonna tell me why you don't want to go home?"

"Can we talk tomorrow? I'm so damn tired. Can't I just go to sleep?"

He rolled his eyes, "And where exactly are you supposed to sleep?"

"In your bed, Detweiler." She laughed when his cheeks turned pink, "C'mon! We've been having sleepovers since we were kids. How is this any different?"

"We haven't had any sleepovers since we hit middle school. We're almost seniors now."

She shrugged. "You're my best friend, and I trust you. I need a t-shirt and some boxers. I don't want to sleep in these barfy clothes."

He left his bathroom and headed to his dresser to grab one of his old large tshirts and a pair of freshly washed boxers. "I don't know if they'll fit you. You are pretty-"

His words trailed off when he rounded the corner. Spinelli had taken it upon herself to remove her clothes and was currently standing in his bathroom running her hands through her hair in just her bra and underwear. He knew as she had grown older, she had definitely gotten more attractive, but she was always covering up her body with sweatshirts and other baggy clothes. He knew puberty had been good to her, but it was always such a surprise just to see how good. Her body, though short in stature more than made up for it with her curvaceous figure and ample bust. She had definitely inherited her mother's sexy Italian genes. Too bad she never showed them off.

She turned and gave T.J. a dirty look, "See something you like, Detweiler?"

He smirked, "Can't say that I don't."

She rolled her eyes but grinned and snatched his tshirt out of his hand, purposely getting close, just to see him bristle. She pulled it over her head and laughed when the shirt went down to her knees. "Looks like I won't be needing those boxers after all."

Then she walked past him and hopped into his bed, snuggling under the covers. "My head hurts. Night."

"Where am I supposed to sleep, Spinelli?"

"In your bed? Where else?" he heard her voice mumbling, "It's not a big deal."

It was a big deal. She may have thought nothing of it, but to him, sleeping in the same bed of his best friend turned crush was pretty big. He knew he wouldn't do anything to her, but his heart was still racing, especially when he picked up on her scent when he went under the covers. He had to be careful, otherwise, he would end up with a serious case of blue balls in the morning. And if she saw it, she would never let him live it down.

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**Chapter 1! Hope you enjoyed it :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**Story: Of Spitfires and Friendships  
Pairing: T.J./Spinelli, lite Gretchen/Vince  
Rating: Mid T  
Summary: T.J. doesn't really know when his feelings for Spinelli changed, but he can't imagine living without her. Too bad she has yet to realize her own. Slight AU. **

**A/N: Thank you for the reviews! I found them sweet and I appreciate them! :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Recess and am merely using the characters for my own entertainment.**

* * *

T.J. kept checking his phone, looking to see if Spinelli had contacted him or sent him a text. He had woken up in the morning, but she had been gone. He called her and texted her, but she hadn't answered so he wondered if she had even made it to school today. It was worrisome. Spinelli was elusive to a point, but this was a bit much, even for her. He wondered if everything was alright. He left her one last text message asking if she was okay before heading over to her first class, history, hoping she would be there.

T.J. found Gretchen standing outside the history classroom, peeping through the window on the door and trying to listen to what was going on.

"What's going on, Gretchen?"

"Mr. Buncler is talking to Spinelli about the test."

"Did something happen?"

"Well, if you mean she came in to class ten minutes late, put her head on her desk and slept through the entire test, then yes. Something happened." She sighed and turned away from the window and gave T.J. a suspicious look, "I stopped by her house this morning to give her a ride to school, because I figured she would be late, but her mother said she never came home. Weren't you supposed to see to it that she got home safely?"

"She slept over at my place last night."

Gretchen's eyebrows shot up and she pushed her glasses up her nose, clearing her throat awkwardly, as a small blush formed on her face, "Well. That would explain why she was so tired. I commend you, T.J. Detweiler. I didn't think you possible of closing the deal."

T.J. rolled his eyes, "You can stop your train of thought right there, Gretch, cuz it's wrong. Yeah, we 'slept' together, but sleeping was definitely the extent of what went on." Well, on her part at least. Though, he wasn't about to tell Gretchen how he spent the entire night trying to fend off a particularly bad boner and a koala-like Spinelli who had attached herself to him late in the night and wouldn't stop wiggling. "She just didn't want to go home for some reason."

Gretchen frowned, "Did she say why?"

"I don't know, but she seemed put off by something. She kinda freaked a bit when I insisted. And I don't mean normal Spinelli freaking. She almost seemed scared." Gretchen's eyebrows furrowed, and her lips thinned. T.J. knew she only got that look when she connected dots, "Do you know something?"

She grimaced, "Well, I don't know if it's really something... It's just, she told me-"

Before she could finish her statement, the classroom door banged opened, and Spinelli walked out, dragging her feet, a particularly sour look on her face, "That old bag of bones Buncler. I'd really like to lay him out."

T.J. patted the top of her head, smiling when she glared at him for the condescending motion. "What'd you get this time, Spinelli?"

"He's making me retake the test this Friday _and _I have to get an A on the end of the year exam or I'm retaking his class over summer break. And if I fail that too, I don't get the credits and I'll have to take the course again senior year."

Gretchen shook her head disdainfully, "I told you not to go to the party, Spinelli. You made a bad decision, and now you have to reap the consequences."

She rolled her eyes, "This sucks! I need an aspirin, I feel like throwing up, and I'm tired as hell! Why should I have to go to classes?"

Gretchen shook her head again, "Spinelli, you should start getting serious about school. You do want to graduate with us next year, don't you?"

"Okay _mom_." Spinelli grinned. "Whatever you say."

Gretchen rolled her eyes, "Anyway, I'm heading to my next class. I can't be late."

"Yeah I'll see you later, Gretchen! You need to tell me about you-know-what!" Spinelli called out.

T.J. frowned seeing Gretchen's face burn a slight red, but didn't say anything. What was that all about? Spinelli suddenly grabbed his arm, tugging him down the hall.

"We've both got a free period. Let's go get something to eat."

"Don't you ever think about something other than food?" He let her continue pulling him in the direction of the dining hall, "Did you hear? About the house with the party we went to last night?"

"What about it?"

"Apparently, the owners had been out of town and some frat boys broke into it and started a party. Twenty students got arrested when the cops showed up and everyone split."

She laughed out loud, but then grimaced and settled down when her head began pounding again, "Ha. Serves them right."

He narrowed his eyes at her, "Spinelli... That could have been us. We're lucky we left when we did, because apparently the cops showed up five minutes later."

She shrugged indifferently, "Who cares? We didn't get arrested, so it's not like it should matter."

"They found meth in a lot of the drinks too!"

Spinelli started laughing really hard, "No way! That's just too funny!"

He yanked his arm out of her strong grip and forced her to stop, spinning her around roughly so she could see his face. It wasn't funny and he was getting tired of Spinelli making too light of a deal over this. He glared intensely down at her, grabbing her shoulders and shaking her lightly, "Wake. Up. Spinelli. You _drank_ those drinks last night. A lot of them!"

She pried his arms off of her shoulders and frowned, "Chill, Detweiler. I'm fine, aren't I?"

"Look, Spinelli. You may not care what happens to you, but _I_ do, okay?" Her face burned red. "You could have been seriously ill! Can't you take anything seriously?"

When she didn't respond, he scoffed and turned around and walked away. She could make him so mad sometimes, always goofing off, never taking life seriously. He understood she had a different philosophy on life than he did, but he wished she would realize that the things she did didn't just affect her, if they affected her at all. They also affected Gretchen, Vince, Gus, Mikey, and especially himself. Even if she wasn't going to stop being reckless for herself, the least she could do is consider the feelings of her best friends.

She ran up to him and grabbed his hand, stopping him from walking away, "Look. I'm sorry, okay T.J?" She looked up at him with brown doe eyes, biting her bottom lip in worry, "I just... Don't be mad, okay? I'm sorry. Truce?"

He rolled his eyes in defeat. Knowing her, she probably was not very sorry at all, or she didn't get what it was she was supposed to be sorry about in the first place, but how could he resist her apology with her face like that? It kind of annoyed him how cute she really was when she wanted to be. And she knew how to flaunt it too.

"Yeah, whatever." She grinned widely, and they continued on their way to the lunch room, "By the way, where were you this morning? I woke up and you were gone."

"I went home to pick up some clothes really quickly. I couldn't go to school wearing barf you know? It's not really my color."

"Your mom said she hadn't seen you."

Spinelli's shoulders tensed and though he didn't say a word to mention it, he could clearly see she was uncomfortable, "Yeah. I, um... I went in through my window and then left."

"So then why were you late for school?"

She snorted, "What's with the third degree, T.J?"

"I'm just worried is all."

"Well don't be." she snapped, "There's nothing _to_ worry about."

He glanced down at Spinelli. Her face was a bit flushed and she was breathing a bit harder than necessary. She was so stiff and tensed up, he could immediately tell something was way off. It kind of upset him that she thought he would be fooled by her declaration that nothing was the matter. He had known her for almost eleven years now. What was so bad that she couldn't even tell him? He was her best friend who she told EVERYTHING. Even when she got her period! He wasn't gonna let her back out this time.

"Is something going on at your-"

"Yo, Spinelli!"

Conrad Mundy sprinted up out of nowhere, looking out of breath and a bit crazed, "You gotta check this out! Some freshman got into this huge fight with a senior and now it's like grade wide war!"

Spinelli turned to Conrad eagerly, welcoming the distraction from the question she knew T.J. had been a few seconds from asking, "No way! Who's winning?"

"The freshman! It's awesome! You gotta come watch!"

"Hell yeah! No way am I missing out on that action!" She gave T.J. a small smile, "I'll see you later, okay, Teej?" And then she ran off after him, leaving T.J. standing there, once again, annoyed that she had avoided talking about whatever the heck was going on in her life.

He frowned. It hurt that she was avoiding talking to him. It was as if after eleven years, she still couldn't trust herself fully to him. He pushed back the voice in his head telling him he was actually upset because of something deeper. Something that had to do with his feelings for his pint sized bestie. But he knew one thing for sure. If she thought avoiding the problem was going to make T.J. stop worrying about it, she was sorely mistaken.

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**Chapter 2! Hope you enjoyed it :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**Story: Of Spitfires and Friendships  
Pairing: T.J./Spinelli, lite Gretchen/Vince  
Rating: Mid T  
Summary: T.J. doesn't really know when his feelings for Spinelli changed, but he can't imagine living without her. Too bad she has yet to realize her own. Slight AU. **

**A/N: Thank you for the reviews! I found them sweet and I appreciate them! :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Recess and am merely using the characters for my own entertainment.**

* * *

When he had gotten out of the shower, T.J. had just expected to go to bed immediately, which was why he was so surprised when he received the text message from Spinelli.

**can i come over?**

TJ blinked at the message, confusion all over his face. It wasn't that it was weird that Spinelli wanted to come over. In fact, she came over unannounced several times in the past, often times interrupting him during his... personal activities. But it was 2 AM, and usually, she was in bed by this time. She may have been a rough n' tumble kind of gal, but her body was still small, and fatigue usually hit her heavily. So why was she asking to come over?

**Sure, but why? Something going on?**

She didn't respond. TJ figured she wouldn't. It was always flight for her. Ever since that horrible party, anytime someone brought up her house or her family, she would avoid answering questions like the plague, often times citing having to use the bathroom as an excuse to avoid answering. Just the week before, he had gone next door to Spinelli's on the way home since she had missed school that day. He just wanted to check up on her and make sure everything was alright, but as soon as he had approached her mailbox, Spinelli had thundered out like a woman on a mission, and forcibly redirected his path to his house so that they could play video games. Her reason for missing school? She had the "flu". Funny how she got better in one day. When he had mentioned that to her, she had shot him a look so dirty, he thought he was a goner.

True to his word, T.J. had done the best he could investigating the reason behind Spinelli's sudden turmoil. Mainly, he had questioned Gretchen about Spinelli's behaviour. She was Spinelli's best girl friend after all. He figured she would know something. And it seemed she did. When he had asked her about Spinelli, she had stumbled over her words saying that there was nothing wrong and that he was probably imagining it. Gretchen was a _horrible_ liar, and he knew she had been lying at that moment. She _knew _something, which meant Spinelli had told her something which meant that something really _was_ wrong. The only thing he couldn't figure out was why she hadn't told him yet. It only made him more determined to find out what was going on. At least he could have a chance to figure it out tonight.

She lived next door, so it didn't take her long to scramble across the tree between their windows and onto his window's ledge. She knocked twice, then paused and knocked again, their special little 'It's me' signifier. He pulled open the shades and lifted the window, stepping back so she could slide in. She looked a mess. There were leaves in her hair, her tank top was in complete disarray and her shorts had ridden up precariously, showing a few centimeters of her-

TJ quickly looked away from her before he gave the little guy a reason to wake up.

He quickly cleared his throat when Spinelli gave him a weird look and tried to calm down his red face. "So what's up? Why'd you wanna come over at 2 AM?"

She put her hands on her hips, "Can we not do the whole interrogation thing tonight, Detweiler? I just want to watch a movie."

And that's when he smelled the alcohol on her breath. It was subtle, and light, meaning she probably only had one drink, but it was definitely there. He walked straight up to her and leaned down, squinting his eyes in disbelief, "Have you been _drinking_, Spinelli? In what world do your parents let you drink?_ Especially _on a school night?"

She didn't respond, just rubbed her arm silently and glared at some imaginary lint on the ground.

"Spinelli, seriously. What's going on with you? You never seem to want to go home, you refuse to talk about your family or anything that's going at your house, and now you're drinking in the vicinity of your crazy mom? What's gotten into you?"

Spinelli bit her bottom lip, and she remained looking down, her eyes becoming glassy, "Teej. I really can't do this right now... Please. Can we just watch a movie?"

TJ had never seen Spinelli behave this way. This wasn't the tough, confrontational one he knew. She looked so defeated, so weak, so... _small_. Suddenly, she wasn't Spinelli, the loudmouth tomboy who could beat your ass in a matter of seconds. She was Ashley, the sensitive, self-conscious girl who wasn't very good at telling people how she felt. Sighing in defeat, he grabbed her hand and pulled her to him, hugging her to his chest. He knew she was too proud to cry, but that didn't mean she didn't need someone to console her.

He sighed again, "Look. Whatever the deal is at your house, you obviously don't want to tell me. But I wish you would at least come to me when you're in trouble or when you're hurting. I'm your best friend, Spin. You can talk to me."

She gripped his shirt and nodded against his chest, though she still said nothing. He rubbed her back, softly, fighting the urge to blush like a kid. He liked Spinelli's spitfire, tough personality, but this sweet... _cute_ side of her really threw him off guard. It was a side of her he rarely saw and when she showed it, he always found another piece of him falling more for his petite friend. He wanted to protect her. He wanted to be the one who would will away all her pain. His eyes widened slightly.

_Huh... I like Spinelli._

He had come to that revelation, but a part of him told him he had known it all along. He had known it since that fateful day they shared their first kisses under the watchful eyes of their classmates.

He pulled slightly away and gazed down at her. Her face was slightly red, though her eyes weren't misty anymore. She bit her bottom lip again and her brown eyes looked up at him uncertainly, her hands tightening their hold on his shirt. His eyes dropped down to her lips before moving back to her eyes.

"T.J... I-"

"Shh..."

He was sure he had a death wish. But he couldn't help it. Something in him propelled him to slide his hand under her chin and tilt it up. Her eyes began to draw closed as his face drew nearer. He would worry about the consequences later. He didn't want to pass up this chance now.

_What chance? The chance to royally fuck up your friendship?_

"T.J is everything alright? I heard some rustling by the tree outside your-

They sprang apart so fast, as if an electrical current ran between them, faces burning red and T.J's unfortunate little guy, throbbing for some damn reason. He turned to the left, to try to keep his mom and Spinelli from seeing his excitement.

His mom's face was poking through his bedroom door, "Oh, Spinelli. I didn't know you were over." She shot T.J a knowing smile, "Care to tell me what this late night rendezvous is about young man? It's 2 AM."

He burned red and forced himself not to look over at Spinelli, "Mom, she couldn't sleep so she just came over to watch a movie."

"Oh?" She turned to Spinelli whose face had turned impassive again, the wall firmly in place, moment, totally forgotten. "Where were you planning on sleeping Ashley?"

She shrugged, "I dunno, Jan. I guess in your son's bed?"

Janet smiled, "As much as I'd love for that to happen soon-

"Mom!" He wasn't sure his face could get any redder than it already was. He figured his color was something like carmine at this point. But then again, that was kind of a good thing. At least it kept the blood up there and not down south.

"-I do believe it would be inappropriate for a school night. I know you're responsible, but I'll prepare the guest bedroom for you Ashley, once you two are done." TJ shot his mom an annoyed glare, and she put her hands up in mock surrender, "With the movie, T.J." She grinned knowingly at them once more before ducking out his room, leaving them to their thoughts. T.J. couldn't speak for her, but his mind was reeling.

Spinelli scratched her arm nervously, "Maybe I should just go back home, you know?" She looked up from where her eyes had been on the carpet, but when her eyes met T.J's, she quickly averted her gaze. She wasn't blushing. T.J. knew she felt awkward, as opposed to flustered, which he would have preferred.

"We can still watch the movie." He rolled his eyes. She was picking flight again, running away from the situation. Well, he for one, was not going to let her keep running from him because of what almost happened. He wished he could have kissed her, but maybe she really wasn't emotionally ready. Besides, something told him it was probably the alcohol that let him hug her and almost kiss her. There was no way the Spinelli he knew would let it get that far. He knew he should wait. He definitely knew how he felt about her. But he had no idea how she felt. And Spinelli wasn't one to normally dwell on feelings. He could wait for her, he guessed. He'd wait until she had defeated some of her demons before he pressed his feelings upon her. "Didn't you want to escape home in the first place? Don't tell me you'd rather go back there than watch a movie with your best friend?"

Sensing no awkwardness on his part, a grin grew on Spinelli's face, "You'd better pick a good movie! Action and lots of fighting please!"

He rolled his eyes as she hopped onto his bed and made herself comfortable as he turned on his tv. "We're never going to sleep, you know? And then we'll fail out of school because we aren't getting enough sleep and can't focus."

"Quit bitchin' like a little girl, T.J. You could have said no, couldn't you?"

"Even if I had said no, you still would have come barging in, demanding I watch the movie with you."

She laughed, "Damn straight."

Once the DVD was playing and Spinelli had fallen silent, enraptured by the plot did T.J. finally chance a glance at Spinelli. Her face was alight in happiness, her eyes shining happily at the violence on the screen. She looked completely at ease, completely like the Spinelli with all her walls intact. She didn't seem to be plagued at all by what had almost transpired between them.

_Of course._

He tried to ignore the disappointment he felt. This was Spinelli he was talking about. Of course she wasn't affected. She probably had just shoved the moment to the back of her mind, pretending it was a dream that never happened.

He was trying to be accepting of her seriously limited emotional capacity, but it was hard. He still couldn't quite ignore the hurt he felt that she seemed quite eager to ignore the moment. And also the hurt from the the fact that Spinelli didn't trust him enough to tell him what was going on with her.

He turned back to the screen, and watched the film, though his mind was elsewhere. Tomorrow. Tomorrow, he'd go to Gretchen. Spinelli didn't seem to want to tell him what was going on so he'd get his answers from Gretchen.

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**Chapter three! Hope you enjoyed it! :)**

**Note: This chapter hasn't been revised yet, but I felt bad I haven't updated in almost a month so I tried to dispatch the chapter as soon as possible. If there are any horrible grammatical errors, I'll take care of them in due time.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Story: Of Spitfires and Friendships  
Pairing: T.J./Spinelli, lite Gretchen/Vince  
Rating: Mid T  
Summary: T.J. doesn't really know when his feelings for Spinelli changed, but he can't imagine living without her. Too bad she has yet to realize her own. Slight AU. **

**A/N: Thank you for the reviews! I found them sweet and I appreciate them! :)**

**Also sorry, this chapter is also unrevised, so there might be some errors here and there.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Recess and am merely using the characters for my own entertainment.**

* * *

TJ walked through the doors of the library, looking for his red headed friend. The librarian was sitting at the service desk reading a book, completely oblivious to the world around her. He spotted Gretchen sitting near the copy machine and headed over to her. To his amusement, he noticed that the back jacket of the librarian's book was of some intellectual novel, but when he walked by, he couldn't help but catch a glimpse of some choice paragraphs that didn't seem like they would be found in an intellectual novel. He walked up to Gretchen.

"Alright. Spill."

Gretchen looked up from her textbook at TJ, a blank look on her face, "Spill what?"

"What's going on with Spinelli?"

Gretchen shook her head, "It's her business, ask her."

"So you admit that there _is_ something going on with her, then?" Gretchen looked back down rapidly as her face began to burn. Busted. TJ crossed his arms and sat down across from her at the library table . He wasn't going to get brushed off again. Not this time. If Spinelli was so dead set on not telling him what was going on, he would get his answers elsewhere. Plus, he had no other real options since she'd been avoiding him for a week since The Almost Kiss. "Look, I'm her best friend. Why won't she tell me what's the matter?"

Gretchen sighed heavily and pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose. "Look TJ, I have no idea why she hasn't told you. Maybe she's scared or something."

"Scared of what?"

"Scared that maybe you'll judge her?" Gretchen shrugged when TJ's face took on a look of disbelief, "Look, I dunno."

"How can she be scared of how I'm going to react if she hasn't even bothered to tell me yet? Let _me_ be the judge of that. I would've thought by this time, she would trust me enough with anything. When have I ever not been supportive?"

"Uh... You've been pretty unsupportive about some of her activities a lot of times. You weren't supportive of her dating Lawson, remember? In fact, you guys stopped talking for a while because you had to be an asshole."

TJ rose an eyebrow, "So you're going to tell me that you supported all of her drinking and streaking and joyriding and fighting? And c'mon, Gretchen. It was fucking _Lawson _of all people!"

The librarian raised her head above her trashy romance novel and shushed them loudly, fixing them with a heated glare. No doubt he had interrupted a steamy scene with his outburst. They apologized and lowered their heads, trying to keep their conversation down.

Gretchen sighed again, this time, he noted, it was in defeat, "Okay TJ. I'll tell you what she told me, but only because I trust you... and you _are_ her best friend. You've always been able to help her at her lowest."

He leaned closer when Gretchen beckoned him, "She's feeling guilty, TJ. And to handle her guilt, she's partying and messing around with some of the druggies of the grade. I'm doing the best I can to stop her, but she won't listen."

He swallowed thickly, his throat suddenly dry, not liking the sound of this, "What do you mean, messing around with the druggies?"

"I mean what I mean, Teej."

He knew Spinelli wasn't one to play by the rules, but hearing his suspicions confirmed froze him. How deep in was Spinelli? What the hell happened to make her even consider this kind of behaviour? Sure, she wasn't the most wholesome girl or the most law-abiding, but he knew she had good morals, and Spinelli had a good sense of justice.

He tried to swallow his fears that something truly awful happened, "Why does she feel guilty?"

Gretchen shook her head. "I'll tell you, but we need to discuss some things. First, answer a question of mine: Do you like Spinelli?"

His face burned red, "Of course I like her. She's my best frie-"

"No, TJ. You know what I mean." Her glasses flashed and she stared him down like an interrogator, her face impassive and fierce. "Do you _like_ Spinelli?"

He hesitated for a second, but then realized there was no point in hiding it. He'd been hiding it for long enough. And even if Spinelli found out from someone other than him, it didn't matter, "Yes. I like her."

Gretchen leaned back in her chair and smiled, "Good."

He slumped in his chair, his eyes averted, "It doesn't matter anyway. She probably doesn't feel the same way."

"I wouldn't be too sure about that."

TJ looked up at Gretchen, a suspicious look on his face, "And how would you know that?"

"TJ, I'm Spinelli's best girl friend. Who else would she come to about her boy problems? She tells you a lot of stuff yes, but you're not a girl, so you can't really help."

"Did she say something to you?" his heart began to beat a little bit faster. Maybe there was hope for him yet. "Something about-"

"How you guys almost kissed?" TJ's shocked face made Gretchen laugh, "Like I said, TJ. You may be her best friend, but I'm her best _girl_ friend. She tells me everything. Might I add, smooth moves slick. If your mom hadn't interrupted, how far would you have been willing to go?"

"Not far." He shook his head, "She was drinking that night. It wouldn't have meant anything. Plus, she probably would have clobbered me."

Gretchen chuckled and shook her head chastisingly, "Oh TJ. You naive, stupid boy."

He frowned, annoyed at her belittling tone, "What?"

"I can't believe after all these years, you still don't know Spinelli." He opened his mouth to retort but she cut him off, "No. You don't. You're so caught up in thinking she's the same Spinelli you played with in our childhood, that you haven't really noticed her change."

"What do you mean? I have noticed some changes."

"Yeah, the obvious ones. But there are so many subtle things you clearly didn't see."

"I never really saw a difference, though."

"Of course, _you_ haven't. But did you ever stop to think about why she didn't speak to you for a month after you started dating Ashley Q sophomore year?"

"No-"

"Why she used to put thumb tacks in your shoes every time you would look at a girl in eighth?"

"No-"

"Or why she asked you to the Sally Hawkins dance, _immediately_ after it had been announced?"

"No, but-"

She put up a finger, cutting him off, "Do you even know why she broke up with Lawson this past summer after almost a year of dating?"

"She told me it was because he was an asshole."

Gretchen rolled her eyes at him, "And you believed that excuse? C'mon. Lawson has always_ been _an asshole. Spinelli's not blind. Why would she realize it just then?" TJ looked offended, "She broke up with him because he was pressuring her into having sex."

The blood drained from his face, "What? She never told me this." He was so gonna beat that asshole.

"Of course she didn't. Because when she would talk about Lawson, you'd always act like such an ass, criticizing everything she did with him, commenting how he was no good, and she could do better. Small things that made her not want to tell you about her relationship."

He felt like shit. When Lawson had been Spinelli's boyfriend, he had definitely acted like an ass. He never approved of their relationship, probably because he was jealous, but instead of supporting Spinelli as he should have as her friend, he had been demeaning and awful.

"So I'm an unsupportive ass of a friend. But what does her break up have to do with this?"

Gretchen rolled her eyes again, "Men... You guys don't understand _anything_."

"Hey! Since I'm so clueless, why don't you just stop being so cryptic and _tell_ me?"

She ignored him, "TJ, is Spinelli a prude?" He rolled his eyes. It was always so annoying when she would ask him questions as a response.

He thought about it. Spinelli was a tomboy by nature, but he knew she wasn't exactly uncomfortable with showing her body or fooling around. In fact, he had caught her on third base with some random guy at a party once. She usually wore leather jackets and boots and skinnies, but she wasn't averse to showing her arms and legs or midriff on occasion.

"I guess not."

"Right. But believe it or not, Spinelli _is_ a virgin."

Now this, was shocking. He hadn't expected that. Of course, a little part of him inside had hoped she was, and had hoped that the reason she had never told him if she had lost her virginity or not was because she was still one.

"So why would she say no to Lawson?"

Gretchen fixed him with a serious look, "Because she's saving herself for you."

There was a deafening silence between them. TJ couldn't even begin to describe the amount of shock he felt at hearing those words. If Spinelli had been saving herself for him... then that would mean that she liked him. But how? He had never once gotten that vibe from her.

"She was saving herself for me? She told you that?"

"Yes TJ. She _is_ saving herself for you. And that night, when you almost kissed her, she may have been drinking, but she was definitely sober enough to know what was happening. She was disappointed when you didn't try again. She thought you rejected her."

"What?" His eyes were looking a bit crazed, "That makes no sense! My mom walked in on us. The mood was totally shot!"

"Shhhhhh!" The librarian's finger was firmly pressed to her lips and she glowered at them, "If you guys can't pipe down, you're out of here!"

Gretchen shrugged, ignoring her, "TJ, I don't think it makes any sense either, but this is _Spinelli_ we're talking about. She sees only what she sees."

"Yeah, no doubt." He slumped in his chair again. Is that why she hadn't spoken to him in a week? Because she thought that he had rejected her and the friendship was ruined? He couldn't believe that's what happened. He thought she had been avoiding him because she was sickened by the fact that he tried to kiss her and that she didn't want to continue being friends with him.

"She asked me if you liked her, TJ. She seemed really worried about what the answer might be."

"What did you say?"

"I told her to open her eyes and figure it out. Of course, she ignored me and decided to ignore you too, apparently.

"You know, you see only what _you_ see too, TJ. You're both so stupid. That's why you've both had so many misunderstandings." Gretchen shook her head, "I swear, for being such great friends, you guys really don't know anything about each other."

Maybe it was time he reevaluated things that happened with Spinelli. Maybe he had been missing subtle things. Maybe he had ignored some key signs from Spinelli from his own preconceived idea that she didn't like him back.

"But then what? I appear in front of Spinelli on a white horse and declare my everlasting love for her or something? Cuz that would go down great."

A small grin appeared on Gretchen's face, "Every girl likes to feel like a princess sometime, TJ. Even if said girl is Spinelli." The bell rang and she started to gather her books, "There's a class in here next period, so I'm gonna head out."

"Wait, you never told me why she was guilty?"

Gretchen turned and looked at him, her lips thin, "Spinelli's older brother is in jail."

TJ's eyes widened, "What?! Joey is? What happened? How long ago was this?"

"It happened this past Christmas break. All I know is that Spinelli considers herself the cause of this and now her family is in disarray. She didn't tell me anything else. That's why I told you. Maybe she'll tell you the rest."

It was that long ago?! Christmas break was in December. It was April. She had been keeping it a secret for several months now. He was silent, his mind reeling from what Gretchen just revealed. Spinelli had been blaming herself for landing her brother in jail? And that's why she had been going crazy at parties and stuff? So then what was the deal with why she didn't want to go home? So many questions flied through his mind. They had so much to discuss. Seriously.

"Hey, is Spinelli at school today?"

A small, knowing grin appeared on Gretchen's face, "She's not, but I don't know where she is today."

He knew. At least, he had an inkling. "I think I know."

"Good." Gretchen picked up her bag, "Well, if you don't need me anymore, I'm off to see my boyfriend."

TJ frowned, flabbergasted and slackjawed. Gretchen had a _boyfriend_?!

"You have a boyfriend? Who?" He exclaimed, ignoring the annoyed look she gave him at his thinly veiled skepticism.

"If you don't already know, there's no reason to tell you."

He growled under his breath, "What is it with you girls and always keeping secrets? I don't understand you at all."

She shrugged as she waved goodbye, "We're girls, TJ. You're not supposed to understand us. Good talk. I hope now that you have this information, you'll do the right thing."

"The right thing could end badly for me."

Another grin appeared on Gretchen's face, "But you're willing to take the chance anyway, right? Good luck, Detweiler."

Making up his mind, he stood up from the table and grabbed his bag. He knew what he was going to do. To hell with the rest of the school day. Marching out of the library, he walked straight out of the school and to his car.

His mind was reeling when he finally got to his home. He still didn't know what he would say or how to approach her about this, but he knew he wouldn't let her take the easy way out this time. He walked up the stairs toward his room, already hearing the TV, and the distinct sound of Spinelli's cackles. Taking a deep breath, he opened the door.

Spinelli jumped and looked guiltily up at him from her position on the floor, "TJ! I didn't expect you back right now. I was just- I mean-"

There was nothing strange about her platonic greeting, but he looked at her, _really_ looked at her this time and realized she was blushing. It was faint and small, but it was definitely there. She looked smaller than he remembered, as if the weight of all her burdens was pushing her down, making her smaller each day that she held it in. All the words that he had been building up to say died on his tongue. He had been so wrong about Spinelli. He wasn't even sure if all these years of friendship, he had actually paid real attention to her. And now she was going through something hard by herself, and he didn't even know because she hadn't felt comfortable telling him since he was such an ass.

_Act now, think later._

His jaw set, he strode over to her with purpose, his eyes never breaking contact with hers. He reached down, pulled her up by her arms to him, and firmly pressed his lips against hers.

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**This chapter was a bit all over the place in my opinion. Kinda sloppy and unorganized too, but I wanted to get this story over with already. Anywaaaaay, the next chapter is probably going to be the last one of this story.**

**Hope you enjoyed :)**


	5. Chapter 5

**Story: Of Spitfires and Friendships  
Pairing: T.J./Spinelli, lite Gretchen/Vince  
Rating: Mid T  
Summary: T.J. doesn't really know when his feelings for Spinelli changed, but he can't imagine living without her. Too bad she has yet to realize her own. Slight AU.**

**A/N: Yay! Last chapter finally! This was my noob first story and I finally finished it! Hooray! I hope you guys enjoyed the ride. It probably sucked but whateva! I had fun writing it! I want to thank anyone and everyone who reviewed! I really appreciate them! **

**Note: This was a quick update to finish the story off, but then I'll be revising the entire thing within the next month, so expect there to be some changes to the chapters. Or not. I might just decide not to change anything... We'll see. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Recess and am merely using the characters for my own entertainment.**

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TJ was surprised how soft her lips were. Their first kiss was a distant memory jumbled with all the elementary school memories, but he had remembered her lips being somewhat chapped, and there had been a couple grains of sand attached to her bottom lip from falling in the sandbox. But he remembered the sparks he felt, and how hot his hands had felt when they kissed, like how hot his hands were now.

He cracked an eye open when Spinelli didn't respond. She was completely still for a few beats, her muscles stiff and her eyes opened. But then, her eyelids slid shut, and her stiff lips loosened, melding against TJ's without obstruction. He closed his eyes again and held her tighter.

Until she suddenly pushed him hard against his shoulders and kicked him in the shin. He stumbled backwards, his shin exploding in pain.

"What the hell, Spinelli?!" he yelped, stumbling around while gripping his aching leg, "What the hell was that for?! I finally show you I like you and instead of reciprocating, you break my damn leg!"

He had been wrong. Gretchen had been wrong. Maybe she really didn't like him like that. At least, maybe not anymore. Their friendship was probably doomed now. He looked up, expecting a murderous expression on her face, but she was blushing. And she was smiling?

"_That_, was for waiting this long." A small, happy laugh escaped her mouth, "About damn time, Detweiler."

"So Gretchen wasn't lying? You really do like me."

"Gretchen... you bitch. I told you not to tell." she growled under her breath.

"Spinelli, tell me the truth. Do you like me?"

"Isn't it obvious?"

"It's not. Not to me. I honestly thought you'd never feel anything more than platonic like for me."

She took a deep breath before finally looking up to meet his eyes, "Yes, okay. I like you."

"Why didn't you say anything?" He rubbed his shin and walked up to where Spinelli was standing, gesturing for her to sit down next to him.

"I dunno. I was scared, I guess. I mean, you're my best friend, TJ. If I lost you, I don't think I'd ever be able to face you again. And that would suck."

"Okay, I get that, I do, but then why didn't you at least tell me about your brother? I'm your friend first, remember?"

Her eyes widened a fraction and she chewed her nail, obviously contemplating whether or not to tell him, "I knew you would judge me, Teej. I know. I make a lot of stupid mistakes and do stupid things, but when my parents get disappointed in me, it doesn't even matter. But when you show how disappointed you are in me, I can't take it. Which is why I never told you what happened. I just knew you wouldn't be able to take me seriously anymore."

"How would you know that if you didn't even try, Spinelli? Since when were you _not_ able to tell me something? Even when you got your period, and I fervently asked you not to tell me about it, you did anyway. Why should that have stopped you?"

"TJ, we're not middle schoolers anymore. We don't feel the same as we did back then. We're older now, and telling you could have ruined everything we built." she shrugged, "I knew I liked you, but I didn't want to ruin my chances before I even got a chance by telling you something horrible."

"Can you tell me now?"

"Do you promise not to judge me?" he nodded, so she continued, "So around Christmas, Mom was getting on my nerves with her usual bs. 'You have to act like a girl now', 'you're grown up now, start learning some domestic skills'. So to get back at her, I met up with this druggie and bought some weed."

TJ wanted so badly to comment, but he knew what he promised, so he remained neutral-faced, "Stupid, I know. But I wasn't going to smoke it or anything. I was just gonna buy it to get on my mom's nerves. But it didn't happen the way I wanted it to." She frowned and her face burned red, "Joey had followed me apparently, and he intercepted the purchase, but not before the cops got to us. I'm the one who bought the weed! But Joey told them it was his, and he was already on probation. And now he's in jail. I thought my mom would just yell at me like she always does, but she didn't even say anything. She hasn't really spoken to me in over a month. And my dad, forget him. He's barely home these days. I broke our family, you know? Joey was supposed to take over the family restaurant, but that might not happen now. Sometimes, it gets so hard to deal with, you know? So I need a few distractions."

TJ wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her under the crook of his arm. He could see small tears welling in her eyes and he knew she needed support right now. He knew it wouldn't be right to tell her everything would be alright, because he couldn't predict that. But he would definitely support her and help her get through this. "You kept this to yourself for five months? Spinelli, I really wish you told me. I could have kept you company while you were down."

She chuckled mirthlessly, "Yeah. Looking back on it now, I did some really stupid things."

"_Some_ stupid things?" TJ chuckled when she shot him a glare, "I'd say a whole year's worth of stupid things."

"Hey asshole!" she mock punched his arm, "You said you wouldn't judge!"

"I'm not judging. Not at all. I'm just stating a fact."

She made a face and pinched his side, "You know, I never did drugs. I was tempted to, but I never could. It just felt wrong."

He was relieved to say the least. His mind had jumped to some pretty bad conclusions, and it was nice to get the truth. "I'm glad to hear that."

She nodded and they rested in companionable silence for a spell, with only the sound of of the comedy show's laugh track filling the air every once in a while.

"There is one thing I'd like to know, though. Who is Gretchen's boyfriend?! How come none of us knew?"

Spinelli laughed, "I knew. They were trying to keep it a secret, but I found out when I caught them kissing in the stairwell."

"Tell me who it is!"

"You know what? She told me not to tell anyone, but she revealed my secret. An eye for an eye, bitch." she cackled evilly, "She's dating Vince."

"Vince? As in _our_ Vince?" Spinelli nodded. TJ was at a loss for words. Never in a million years had he expected them to go out. It almost seemed like a lie, it was that impossible to imagine them together. But the more he thought about it, the more he realized he had missed some signs in the past. Maybe he really was blind. "That is so weird."

"Tell me about it..." she gagged, "Gretchen told me it happened on that study date the rest of us didn't show up to a while ago. They had been studying and then it was like they were making out, and she realized she liked him. He liked her back and then they started this secret tryst! I say we expose them!"

TJ slowly nodded his head, "You know what? I agree."

"You better watch out, Gretch. Cuz we're coming for ya." she laughed again, no doubt plotting how to expose their secret.

He stared at her. They had cleared the air between them but now what. What were they? TJ knew it was now or never to figure this out.

"So," TJ turned to her and grinned, "Where do we go from here?"

Spinelli shrugged, "I dunno. You like me. I like you. Now what?"

"I think." TJ slid his hand under her chin and turned her face in his direction, "We should stay friends. But you know, with all the kissing and stuff that comes with a relationship."

A small smirk appeared on her face and her eyes drifted down to his lips before rising back up to his eyes, "Ohhh, I get it. You just want some. Are you suggesting we be friends with benefits?"

"Yeah, something like that. Only I'll call you my girlfriend and we go on dates and stuff. What do you say, _girlfriend_?"

"I say yes... _boyfriend_."

He grinned before kissing her once again.

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**Hahaha what a shitty ending! Well, whatevs. It was hard to find a way to end the story, so I ended it this way. Sorry if you're disappointed, but it was time for me to move on to other projects. :)  
**

**I guess this is goodbye! Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed! A toute a l'heure! :) **


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